Aragua Must Fall

The Man From Iran

Micah arrived at the old pier about fifteen minutes before Miranda’s father showed up. She stood shivering in the dark, arms wrapped tight around herself. Headlights of a car shined in her direction, then died. A tall man stepped out, having broad shoulders, wearing a dark jacket, his shoes crunching on the floor.

Micah’s breath caught. “You’re the one I’m expecting?”

David nodded once, eyes scanning the empty beach before locking on her. “Micah.”

She swallowed. “Yes, I am. But she’s gone. Your daughter… I lost her.”

“I’m David Wick. Tell me everything. Start from the beginning Micah.”

Micah’s voice cracked. “I found her the night before, she was lying by the drainage ditch near the supermarket. She was beaten bad, her face swollen, lip split, blood everywhere. I carried her home. Cleaned her up. She was barely conscious, kept whispering ‘Mommy…’”

David’s jaw tightened, but he stayed silent and kept listening.

“I found a note in her pocket, on it a phone number and two words ‘Call Dad.’ That’s how I got your number. I didn’t know what to do. I was scared. Then my brother Scott came home panicking, and sweating. He’d stolen from his boss, millions in cocaine. The gang was hunting him. He saw Miranda sleeping and… his eyes lit up. Said she was perfect, that his boss wanted kids for the trade and that if he handed her over, they’d forgive him.”

David’s voice was low and dreadful. “He took her?”

Micah nodded, tears dropping. “I told him not to. We fought all night, I even locked the door after he left, but I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking he’d come back. So I sent you the text because I thought maybe you could help, but this morning… she was gone. Scott left me a note saying he had to do it, warning me to stay out or it wouldn’t end well.”

“You protected her as long as you could. That matters.”

Micah looked away, “I didn’t protect her. I lost her.”

“You’re still here, telling me. That’s more than most would do.” David stepped closer, wind tugged at his coat. “You did the right thing texting me.”

Micah looked up at him now, she really looked and noticed his hard face, faint scar under his left cheek, and eyes like they’d seen too much. Instantly, she felt a pull in her chest for him, it was warm and stupid. ‘Stop it,’ she told herself. ‘You’re a stripper. You know what men want when they look at you like that. This isn’t real.’

David’s gaze lingered on her too, his eyes narrowed on her dark hair, on the way her jacket hugged her curves, the charm in her eyes even through the fear. She was very beautiful, though dressed seductively, but beautiful. He pushed the thought away immediately. ‘not now’

“I need to know more about your brother,” he said. “I need you to tell me everything you know about the gang he runs with.”

Micah shook her head fast. “I can’t. If they find out I talked, I’m done for.”

“They won’t harm you.” David’s voice came bold. “I’m not just any dad, Micah. I’m FBI. Secret operative, I’ve been undercover in Iran for three years. I have fought, killed and survived hell most people can’t imagine. I’m back now, and I’m not leaving until every last one of them pays for touching my wife and daughter.”

Micah stared at him, her heart hammered. “You’re FBI…?”

“Yes, Micah. Special branch under deep cover. I’ve tracked syndicates bigger than this one across three continents. I know how they think, so you tell me about Scott, tell me about Aragua. I’ll keep you safe, but I need the truth.”

She bit her lip and looked away because his closeness made her pulse race. She hated she was aware of him... ‘You’re a fool, Micah. Men like him don’t look at women like you and see anything real.’ She convinced herself, but the way he watched her felt like he saw beyond the club makeup.

“Scott has been with Aragua for years. He started with running errands, moving product, but he got greedy. He’s always been greedy. He’s stolen before, he once took a cut from a shipment, blamed it on a rival crew. They beat him so bad he couldn’t walk for a week. He came crying to me, begging for money to pay them back. I gave him everything I had. Next week he was back at it, promising he’d change, but he never did.”

David listened, “Keep going Micah.”

“He’s told me things,” Micah continued. “Aragua isn’t small. They runs everything dirty here. They moved coke, meth, even girls. They move immigrants through the ports. Have cops on payroll. Even politicians. Scott bragged once they’re connected all the way to Venezuela, to a governor in Zulia called Raul Vargas. Scott said Vargas owns judges, cops, even customs guys. He also said the boss can make people disappear or make them wish they did.”

David’s fists clenched at his sides. “Why my wife? Why Carolina?”

Micah hesitated. “I don’t know for sure. But… she worked at that supermarket opposite the club I work. Maybe she saw something like a d*******l late hours of the night or girls being loaded into vans. She was quiet, but she wasn’t stupid. If she tried to fight quietly like calling someone, taking pictures, or anything, they’d come for her. And when they couldn’t get the kid… they took what they could. Maybe that’s why.”

David’s eyes got angry because he knew none of that was true, he trusted his gut, but he filed it away believing he’d tear the truth out piece by piece.

He stepped closer. “You’re in danger too Micah. Scott knows you helped my daughter. Aragua will come looking for you. You must stay with me, be my eyes here, help me find him. I’ll protect you. I swear it.”

Micah looked up at him, he was tall and handsomely strong in the best way. Her pulse raced again. ‘He’s looking at me like I’m worth something’ She wanted to believe it, and lean in, but she’d heard sweet words before, from men who paid for dances and then wanted more at night.

And so she whispered, “Why do you care what happens to me?”

David’s voice dropped low like a growl. “Because you’re the only one who tried to save my little girl when no one else did, because you’re standing here in the cold, scared as hell, and still talking and because…” He paused, eyes fixed on her face. “Because you’re beautiful, and you don’t even know it.”

Micah’s breath hitched because no one had ever said admiring words like that to her unless it’s a transaction.

She looked away, then back. “I’m a stripper, David. I know what men see when they look at me.”

“I’m not most men.” He brushed a strand of her hair from her cheek with his fingers that lingered a little longer than necessary. “I see someone who could have walked away, and didn’t.” his touch sent emotions running down her spine. She didn’t pull back.

“Okay,” she nodded slowly. “I’ll help you. But if you’re playing me...”

“I don’t play with people who matter,” David said quietly. “Not even family.”

Micah gave a small, broken laugh. “You really are different, aren’t you?” She smiled small. “Where do we start helping?”

“Where does Scott go when he’s scared?”

Micah thought. “There is an old warehouse by the rail yard, near the docks. He thinks no one knows about it.”

David nodded once. “Take me there.”

.

They arrived the old warehouse. Dim light leaked through broken windows. David moved quietly, Micah followed behind him but her heart kept pounding.

He raised a hand to make her stop. In the far corner was Scott who crouched near a stack of crates, his back turned, lighting a cigarette with shaking hands.

David drew his gun slowly and stepped forward. Scott froze at the click of the hammer.

“Turn around slowly.”

Scott’s cigarette fell from his mouth. He raised his hands slowly and turned. His eyes went wide when he saw David and wider when he saw Micah behind him.

“Micah… what the f*ck,”

David’s voice was ice cold. “You took my daughter, Scott. Now you’re going to tell me where she is or I’ll start breaking bones that makes your body useful.”

Scott’s gaze darted to the door but David stepped into his path, gun barrel aiming for Scott’s knees.

“Try it,” he said quietly. “See how far you get.”